The 40 Mile a week workout

Back in high school, I had a great coach by the name of Larry Seferovich. He was one of the best running coaches I have ever known. He had a great workout which allowed us to get in shape for track without killing ourselves. It was the 40 mile a week workout.

You may think 40 miles is a long distance, but for guys and gals who are supposed to be distance runners to start with, it wasn't bad. Thanks to this workout, we were able to get in shape in about 2-3 weeks each season.

Week 1

Monday -- 8 miles LSD
Tuesday -- 5 miles, weight workout
Wednesday -- 8 Miles LSD
Thursday -- 5 Miles, weight workout
Friday -- 8 miles LSD
Saturday -- 6 Miles Fartlek
Sunday -- Rest

* LSD = Long Slow Distance
** Fartlek = Sprint between sets of power poles, jog next set.

Week 2

Monday -- 8 Miles LSD
Tuesday -- 5 Miles, Weight Workout
Wednesday -- 5 miles, 12 x 400M @ 75 seconds
Thursday -- 5 Miles, Weight Workout
Friday -- 6 miles LSD, Hills x 10
Saturday -- 8 Miles LSD
Sunday Rest

* Hills = 100M hill x 10 sprinted

Week 3

Monday -- 5 Miles, 12 x 400M
Tuesday -- 5 Miles, weights
Wednesday -- 4.5 Miles, 8 x 800 at 2:40 each
Thursday -- 5 miles, weights
Friday -- 8 miles LSD
Saturday -- 6 miles Fartlek
Sunday -- Rest

While this mileage may sound like a lot, you will likely find that if you cut it in half, you will be able to do it easily. By the end of three weeks, you should be in pretty decent shape if not close to racing shape if you are running track and field.

We will talk about cross country work outs in another posting.